‘World War Z 2′ Tramples Ahead With ‘The Impossible’ Director

Brad Pitt has been suggesting a possible 'World War Z 2' for some time, after the first installment made bank for Paramount, and now the studio has taken one large step forward into making it happen. Director Juan Antonio Bayona has signed on to direct the sequel.

Although 'World War Z' had a bit of a rough beginning with the script -- the studio having signed off on costly rewrites and reshoots -- the film ended up becoming a surprise summer hit. Pitt starred in the film, based on Max Brooks' popular zombie novel, as a United Nations employee traveling the world to figure out the source and hopefully a solution to the quickly spreading zombie plague. Pitt will also return with his Plan B banner to produce 'World War Z 2.'

Plot details are currently unknown, but when we last heard from Pitt was that multiple story ideas were being tossed around. "We have so many ideas on the table from the time we spent developing this thing and figuring out how the zombie worlds work," he said. "We gotta get the script right first to determine if we go further." Currently no writers are attached to the sequel.

Marc Forster directed the first installment, which -- SPOILERS -- finished with Pitt finding a cure and returning to his family. Though, as THR points out, the original ending saw Pitt's onscreen wife, Mireille Enos, with a cold-hearted army officer and Pitt amidst the throngs of a zombie horde. The actor previously said there's plenty of material from the novel that was unfit for the first film, which perhaps will find its way into the sequel.